Do the Uberti 1876 have the same issues with the firing pin extension exiting the rifle that have been reported and discussed on the
Forums for 1873’s amd Henry/1866’s? I ask this because they are all toggle link designs.
Dont know whether this answers your question but the Uberti parts diagram shows the 73 with the crosspin retainer same as I describe below for my 66 - its light 1-16th inch would be generous - their 76 diagram shows a retainer tab very similar to what I saw on our original 73 - would be a much stronger setup
So
First - I have to thank you for your enquiry - it sent me off on a tangent - checked the 76 uberti parts diagram - regurgitated my memory on an original 73 I had apart recently - looked at my Uberti 76 - then went to compare the workings of my uberti 66 - ooooooooopps -- firing pin seems like stuck in the fired position
? its been sitting in the rack for ages while I messed with other stuff - I take em down every three or four months and put an oily rag down the bore but usually dont check further than that.
I use this one for rapid fire match when I shoot it so a stuck firing pin and a round a little sticky equals an out of battery discharge for sure - soooo first time since I owned it that 66 came apart properly - just a little gunk and dryness had that firing pin stuck forwards - a quick clean its all ok -- however -- this rifle has no firing pin retractor at all - no return spring - nothing - and no place to put it neither.
So the firing pin just floats in the bolt - what they call the firing pin extension (curious choice of words - it would more properly be the rear part of the breech bolt) anyways that bit is retained by a cross pin about 16 or 18 gauge through the bolt and there is a slot in the bolt about three times the width of the retaining pin that allows forward motion to strike the primer when the hammer falls - maybe all 66's are built this way (we need Coffinmaker to tell us that) - Uberti current parts page lists a firing pin spring and the diagram seems to show it but the number (95) from the parts page is missing from the diagram.
I'm trying to figure out how one of these would blow ? ya gonna have to get enough gas flow down the firing pin hole through a punctured primer to then shear off that retaining pin and blow the extension bit outta the block back past the hammer OR its an inertia effect when the blown bolt comes to rapid halt agin the back of the frame (more likely the second? ) - out of battery ignition seems the main chance here (by a pretty wide margin I reckon)
I would make a bet that when they are locked up the steel version of these guns are a heap stronger in the action than most people would believe - yeah you will bend the action of a brass gun with overloads and they are quite flimsy with the sideplates removed, but to actually blow a steel 73 or 76 -- requires a fair bit of metal to move someplace.